About OBRA
Who We Are
Who We Are
OBRA is special because everyone involved in our sport believes in our community. We all understand that we rely on each other- from the racers, to the officials, to the promoters, to the sponsors to everyone involved in our little corner of the world. We truly care about each other. This ethos is driven from the top, with our staff and board, and continues all the way through our membership. We strive to create value for our community and provide a welcoming environment for participating.
Involvement
We encourage people to get involved with their community. Not only do we encourage racers to get involved, but we get involved ourselves. OBRA members are directly involved with the Street Trust, IMBA, the Oregon Timber Trail, the Community Cycling Center, and many other great organizations. We believe in leading by example! If you are looking for opportunities to get involved, please reach out to us.
Competitions
Racers get to participate in great competitions. From the BAR to the Oregon Cup to the Women’s Prestige Series, the TT Cup to the Oregon XC Series- we either run or support these great programs. OBRA supports the juniors with Junior Cyclocross and Mountain Bike Series’ and high school programs. We continue to develop new programs to encourage cycling from a young age.
OBRA Vision
Each and every person in the state of Oregon has an awareness of the sport of bicycle racing and the opportunity to participate.
OBRA Mission
OBRA advances the sport of bicycle racing by providing leadership, facilitating competition, and inspiring participation.
Guiding Principles
OBRA Members First: Our members are our priority. We do what is in their best interest to help them succeed, be it participation or performance. We are keenly aware our members have choices and will not take them for granted. We will keep an open discussion with OBRA members to ensure we are meeting their needs.
- Teamwork: Our organization works as a team with our staff, board, promoters, and members.
- Competition: We encourage our members to compete fairly and to win with honor.
- Transparency and Accountability: We value transparency and accountability in our decision-making processes. We recognize when we make mistakes, take responsibility, then address the issues.
- Integrity: Doing the right thing. Always. OBRA will continue to be known for its ethical decision making. Each one of us is a representative of OBRA and our community.
- Giving Back: We recognize that we are a guest in the Pacific Northwest communities in which we race. We strive to treat these communities with the utmost respect and always try to give back.
- OBRA is a Brand: OBRA is an instantly recognizable brand around the United States. Other cycling organizations look to us for leadership and innovation. OBRA is seen as a role model for the sport of cycling.
- Members Lead: OBRA is keenly aware of the sophistication of its members and will treat members as its key stakeholders.
- Inspire: OBRA believes in motivating and inspiring our athletes, promoters, and fans to break down barriers, dream big and pursue their dreams.
- Adaptive and Innovative: OBRA is in perpetual motion and views innovation as a key to success and relevance. We embrace change and new technologies to further the sport of cycling. OBRA creates positive disruption by tapping into the pulse of Oregon bicycle culture.
- Master the Fundamentals: A crucial part of OBRA’s success has been its ability to define and refine its performance and growth. Starting with the basics of cycling fundamentals, OBRA will ensure every athlete has an opportunity to learn and grow while keeping in mind that we listen first, and then lead.
- We are on the Offense–Always: To stay ahead in an extremely competitive environment, OBRA urges its staff, members, officials, and promoters to be leaders in the sport of cycling.
- OBRA Pride: We are passionate fans of cycling and ambassadors of our sport. We take pride in our OBRA community.
- Beyond OBRA: We work collaboratively with the larger cycling community and other governing bodies for the benefit and support of our members. We encourage our members to pursue their goals whether on a local, regional, national, or international level.
OBRA DEI Statement
The Oregon Bicycle Racing Association is committed to diversity, equity, and inclusion in all our affairs
Guided by our vision statement, “Each and every person in the state of Oregon has an awareness of the sport of bicycle racing and the opportunity to participate”, OBRA’s core values include:
Diversity: We are committed to diversity in staff, board, promotors, officials, volunteers, and our membership. We believe in equitable treatment and the elimination of discrimination in all its forms at all levels of the organization
Equity: We align our policies, practices, and resources so that people of all age; ethnicity; gender; gender identity; language differences; nationality; parental status; physical, mental, and developmental abilities; race; religion; sexual orientation; skin color; socio-economic status; work and behavioral styles have the opportunity to thrive in all of our programs.
Inclusion: We strive to create an environment in which everyone feels valued and respected.
The DEI Committee Co-Chairs are Lisa George, Silas Sanderson and Lisa Graham. The can be reached at: dei@obra.org
Our Community
We are great at what we do
OBRA is the foundation for the racing community In Oregon, SW Washington, and parts of Northern California. We serve as the glue between racers, promoters, officials, and sponsors. OBRA is all of us- the sum of all of our parts. We are successful because we rely on each other and understand the importance of all of our roles. OBRA makes it easier to put on events and races.
Who we are
- 4,600-5,000 members
- 44 Official OBRA teams
- 80+ promoters
- less than 50 officials working 300+ events
- 6 volunteer board members
- 5 part time employees
- 3 independent contractors
- 1 full time employee
- and tons of spectacular sponsors and volunteers!
Core Services
Calendar
OBRA provides a comprehensive calendar for races in Oregon, SW Washington and parts of Northern California. When people looks for bike races, they go to OBRA.org.
People
With a yearly membership between 4,600-5,000, OBRA is one of the largest regional bicycle racing associations in the United States. When you join OBRA, you get to become part of an awesome community- a vibrant, colorful and amazing group of people who love to race. You help support an organization that believes in helping provide some of the best racing experiences in the United States. There are not many other locations where you get consistent, plentiful, high quality events with amazing results.
Officiating
Officiating is one of our core services. We provide referee and judging to our races to ensure that events go off without a hitch, results are timely and that races are run fairly.
Logistics
We have an extremely talented staff that can help make your race a success. We also provide insurance and equipment at a very competitive cost.
Results
We pride ourselves in ensuring that results are provided in an accurate and timely manner. Our belief is that everyone should be scored. Whether 1st or 121st, people love to see their name in the results. We also provide a platform for competitions that keep racers coming back. From the Best All Around Rider competition to the Oregon Cup to the Oregon Women’s Prestige Series (among others), our competitions keep racing exciting.
Did you know that sanctioned bicycle race participants spend an average of $144 per day trip and $794 per overnight trip? Or did you know that sanctioned bicycle racing related tourism has a yearly economic impact of $38.4 million per year in Oregon? Check out the Travel Oregon commissioned study: The Economic Significance of Bicycle-Related Travel in Oregon: 2012, Dean Runyan Associates by clicking on the button to the right.